First Brink DLC will be free

Bethesda plans to give away the first Brink DLC as a token of appreciation. Meanwhile, a 360 config change and PC patch help with problems right away.

It's been a tough launch week for Brink. A number of issues have plagued the newest team-based shooter across all platforms--PC, 360, and PS3. As a token of appreciation to fans for sticking with the game, publisher Bethesda announced it plans to give the first Brink DLC pack away for free. Set to be available in June, it will include new maps and content for players. No pricing had been previously announced for the pack.

In the meantime, work continues in earnest to improve the game. A configuration change for 360 players has been put in place that sets Campaign and Freeplay modes to eight total human players in matchmaking. This should lessen the load on hosts and result in more reliable, consistent matches. The change is already in place and will take effect the next time you login to play. Those with ample bandwidth will still be able to play full 8v8 maps with a new "Big Teams" option in Freeplay or through setting up Private matches.

An incremental update has also been released for PC players via Steam. It addresses AI, GPU, and server issues. The full release notes on Steam list all the details. According to the post, many of these fixes will also come to the 360 and PS3 versions in the upcoming full update.